Skate Park Instructor Certification

The SkateIA Skate Park Instructor certification was launched at Camp SkateIA in August 2015 with a very popular and successful certification in Vancouver, Canada. The next one took place in 2015 in Liverpool, UK and the third course will take place in California at Carson Skate Park in Los Angeles, CA on March 23/24/25, 2018.

The intention of all SkateIA courses is to support the growth of and access to skating across all disciplines for the future generation both inside and outside of institutions such as schools and skate parks. They are perfect for those that have been teaching independently for years, as well as those that have not yet taught before.

There are two actions which will encourage the development of aggressive skating in this direction:

Inline and quad skating in skate parks becoming a more legitimate, recognized activity

Parents feeling more comfortable and secure in signing their kids up for lessons and camps in skate parks.

SkateIA has certified hundreds of inline, quad and skateboard instructors in the American continent and is now working with discipline specific certifications. By creating an approved standard of teaching in skate parks around the world, backed by an established and successful organisation in this field (SkateIA), parents will feel more confident and trusting in handing over their kids for lessons and camps.

Both our Slalom and our Skate Park Certification require a high level of competency in your skills UPON arriving for your certification. We recommend you review the required skills before registering.

The Certification is a 2.3 day course including an evening session to start off the course from 6-9pm, off skates. Followed by two full days of slalom skating (9am to 6pm and 9am to 5pm respectively)
Day 1-Evening session 6pm to 9pm, off skates: Theory session and presentation
Day 2- Day session, 9am to 6pm, on skates: learning; practicing and; written test -
Day 3- Day session, 9am to 5pm, on skates: skills testing; final practicing and; teaching testing- 9am to 5pm

The certification course covers professionalism (credibility, responsibility, safety, being trustworthy and fair etc); the Teaching Model; how people learn; safe class management in a skate park; relationships with students to aid learning; managing comfort & fear level of students; class structure; lesson plans; how to break down tricks into easily learnable steps and exercises; how to analyse movement to find improvements to make.

In addition, candidates begin to see their own skating from a different perspective and go away with an enhanced understanding of how to troubleshoot their own learning.

What do we need to do to pass?

The testing involves three tests:Skills test (See below)

Teaching test (You will give 15 minute lesson at the end of the course)

Written test (You will have 30 minutes to answer questions which test your knowledge and understanding of the theory covered during the course)

The Skills test covers the following skills, which need to be performed with credibility:

Drop in to transition

Pump in half pipe

Carve on transition

180 jump on transition

Air a spine

Takeoff and land on fun/jump box and flyoff

Frontside, Backside, Soul stalls

OPTIONAL: Frontside, Backside, Soul grinds

I’ve been teaching for years. Will this benefit me?

In our years of experience of training instructors of varying levels of teaching experience, the more that you’re bringing to the table, the more you’ll get out of the weekend. Entering the course with prior experience will mean that you will have an awareness and broader context for absorbing more of the course content. It will position you to further develop your abilities as an effective, structured, clear-cut instructor.

Should I complete a Level 1 skating instructor certification first?

This is considered an entry-level program and you do not need to be a Level 1 Certified instructor to take this course. However, the emphasis on this course is on teaching in Skate Parks and we encourage you to consider taking the Level 1 Certification which chiefly focuses on the Teaching methods, the solutions new students needs, introductions and a plethora of tips for teaching people on wheels. Both will set you up for success, but Level 1 is not required.